Interesting that water turns out be a great preservative for wood
When we think of wood and water we naturally think of two mortal enemies. Living trees of course need water to survive but once the tree is down water becomes the foremost catalyst for decay. That is unless the trees are full submerged.
Lake Superior turns out to be the ultimate wet graveyard for submerged trees. From the Civil War to World War I, when lumberjacks largely denuded the rugged North Woods of Wisconsin, logs were often stored in floating masses on Lake Superior, and many sank. Rather than retrieve the logs, it was cheaper and easier to cut down more trees. The logging industry of Wisconsin was a flourishing trade creating some 500 million board feet of lumber per year at its height. The towns along the lake grew prosperous as the forests came down building large resorts and even larger mansions.
Lake Superior is the world's largest body of fresh water became a perfect resting place for these old timbers some of which pre date the United States.The low temperatures and oxygen content of the lake preserved the logs, some nearly 700 years old effectively embalmed the trees. Because these mummified logs once grew under a canopy of conifers in low light and limited-nutrient conditions, they matured slower than the fast-growing varieties modem tree farms now use. The result is a superfine grain, with 25 to 70 growth rings an inch (the highest count yet is 77 rings an inch). This compares to an average of six to 15 growth rings an inch in today's harvested trees.
Compare the ring count with farm raised trees and it is clear that this wood has a very special value to instrument makers as well as furniture makers. One particular log, a 300 year old maple, was found to have the same grain tightness and quality of the wood that Antonio Stradivari used for his violins. Stradivari would soak his wood in water to remove the gums and resins much like what happened to these logs.
The above image gives you an idea of what we are talking about when we discuss truly ancient trees. Forests are not allowed to mature to this extent anymore due to all sorts of factors from incessant logging to habitats that are under constant use.
The majority of the lumber that was logged and milled in these areas actually ended up going to Chicago after the great fire of 1871. Unfortunately hard times have fallen on most of these once prosperous towns. The underwater logging operations are the one bright spot in an otherwise grey economy.
Learn more about underwater logging with these links.
Underwater logging on Wikipedia
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